Two worm sperm shimmy across a microscope slide. Unlike most cells that rely on motor proteins to propel themselves forward, worm sperm use tiny fibers at their front ends. Putting the fibers together and taking them apart sets the cells in motion. In a new advance, researchers disassembled the worm sperm cell and rebuilt the parts used for motion so that they worked just as they do in a live cell. This approach may serve as a model for studying how other cells, including cancerous ones, get around. Read more and view video... (http://www.fsu.edu/news/2011/10/18/cell.motility/)

Featured in the November 17, 2011, issue of Biomedical Beat.
Florida State University cell biologist Tom Roberts